Light truck vehicles (LTV's) with energy-absorbing structures typically decrease vehicle underrun in collisions with smaller passenger cars. To that end, energy-absorbing structures typically extend downward from the vehicle frame of the LTV. Current energy-absorbing structures include a blocker beam and complex bracketry. Blocker beam typically extends between rails and is offset downward from the vehicle frame for blocking the smaller passenger vehicle. The complex bracketry typically attaches blocker beam to the vehicle frame.
Blocker beam and bracketry typically add a significant amount of weight to the vehicle. The bracketry typically includes a high number of parts, which can increase in-plant processing time and manufacturing costs.
It would therefore be desirable to provide an underrun protection energy-absorbing structure that has a simple and robust construction with a substantially lighter overall mass and fewer parts, as compared with conventional energy-absorbing structures.